Bearing assemblies can generate significant amounts of heat during operation. Removing excess heat from a bearing assembly can be important to bearing operation and life span. To achieve the required cooling of a bearing assembly, one approach is to use a lubricant. Lubricants, such as oil, may be used to reduce friction in a bearing assembly during operation but can also remove heat from the assembly.
Cooled lubricant may be directed through a bearing assembly to remove heat from the bearing components, thereby cooling the bearing assembly. The heated lubricant flows out of the bearing assembly to various cooling devices where heat is removed from the lubricant. The cooled lubricant can then be returned to the bearing assembly to remove additional bearing assembly heat.
High speed bearing assemblies can generate particularly large amounts of heat. At higher speeds, bearing assembly temperatures can approach material design limits. Demands on the lubricant cooling system may thus increase significantly in high speed operation. Such increased lubricant cooling system demand may be limited thereby reducing available material design margins.